Testimonials

On Stewardship

STEWARDSHIP: The act of managing affairs. In the case of Rockville United Church, the world that God has given into our care.

GENEROSITY: The trait of being willing to give your time or your money unselfishly.

There's a lot that can be said about generosity—giving unselfishly without thinking about rewards, just giving out of gratitude, just giving for love.

You are all familiar with O. Henry’s short story “The Gift of the Magi” in which a young couple “Della and Jim” both give up his/her most prized possession. She sells her hair to buy him a watch fob for his father’s watch. Jim sells his watch to buy combs for her hair.

To me, this fictional story exemplifies the true meaning of giving generously—not for rewards but for love freely given.

While the gift of Christ’s unconditional love for us cannot be measured in dollars and cents, we can show our gratitude and appreciation for his love by giving our time, our talents and our treasure to help carry the message of His love not only to the community of Rockville United Church, but also the wider community of the world as we know it.

Funds are needed to feed hungry people in Rockville, in Montgomery County, in Washington, D.C., in our nation and all over the world. We have been given so much abundance, it behooves us to share more with those less fortunate. Those who need food, shelter, clothing, medical help and all the material things that go into relieving human suffering.

Resources are necessary to work for justice and peace and dignity for all people.

While our gifts can never compare with Christ’s gift of all encompassing love, let us all show our gratitude by our unselfish, generous giving.

In closing, I quote from Deuteronomy 15: 7-8. “If there is among you anyone in need, a member of your community in any of your towns with the land that the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hard-hearted or tight-fisted toward your needy neighbor. You should rather open your hand, willingly, lending enough to meet the need, whatever it might be.” And also from Matthew 24:33, “truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”

Ellie J.
Charter Member of Rockville United Church
Attending since 1959